Travelling with the family home and away

We love exploring when we are on holiday, but our trips are always self-guided, so were keen to try something a little more organised. We have just returned from a fabulous break in the Lake District with HF Holidays who have over 100 years of experience organising guided walking holidays, self guided walking breaks as well as inspiring leisure and activity breaks in the UK, Europe and worldwide. We stayed at Monk Coniston, a beautiful property, once owned by Beatrix Potter and leased from the National Trust. It is set on the shores of Coniston Water, made famous by the… Continue Reading “Exploring the Lake District with HF Holidays”

We last visited Bluestone Wales back in November 2014 for their Kingdom of the Elves Christmas experience and fell in love with the place there and then, despite the wet weather. It also holds fonds memories for me too as it was the where Sebby took his first steps and learned the art of puddle jumping, with the help of his big brother. We were invited back to Bluestone over half term and as I was travelling with the little ones and my eldest daughter and her boyfriend, opted to stay in a large 4 bedroom lodge at Preseli View.… Continue Reading “A Springtime Visit to Bluestone Wales”

Bel The Dragon is a collection of seven characterful Country Inns in the south of England, each bursting with its own personality and quirks. Take a short break, enjoy a family day out or indulge in a fabulous feast this February half term, with children under 12 able to eat for free* Monday to Friday from Friday 10th to Tuesday 28th February 2017. With inns in Cookham, Kingsclere, Churt and Odiham and restaurants located in Reading, Windsor and Godalming, there is plenty of choice for fun activities to make a day of it. Local attractions near sites include Go Ape… Continue Reading “Kids Eat Free this Half Term at Bel & The Dragon”

Over half term we took the kids to Potters Resort for a 4 day break. Potters Resort is a modern five-star holiday village situated on the coastline border of Norfolk and Suffolk, in Hopton-on-Sea. Potters was the first permanent holiday camp in the United Kingdom, opening its doors for the first time in 1920 and it is still run by the same family. It took us an epic 5 hours to drive there from Bournemouth and we couldn’t wait to get checked-in and explore everything it had to offer. We were given our room key and an itinerary and instructions of… Continue Reading “The Accommodation at Potters Resort”

Do you believe in Fairies? Nestling in the lea of a hill where time stood still for hundreds of years surrounded the mighty oaks, tree spirits and woodland creatures, live the Forest Folk, under every leaf, behind every tree you might see them and listen for the fairy bell and they will appear, their gossamer wings glinting in the sunlight. The New Forest Fairy Festival is held in Burley, New Forest and is a weekend packed with entertainment and workshops for the whole family and you are all (including Dad’s) positively encouraged to dress in your finest Fairy and Elf… Continue Reading “New Forest Fairy Festival Review”

The Shark Hotel at Thorpe Park is situated inside the resort itself and sits on the banks of an unexpectedly serene lake and is the perfect crash pad for thrill seekers who want two days of fun at the theme park. A large model shark greets guests at reception and rooms are accessed via its mouth. Checking in took more time than it needed to in my opinion however we were given all the information that we needed about access to the park and wristbands that would give us fast track access to the rides between 9am and 11am the… Continue Reading “The Shark Hotel at Thorpe Park Review”

Going to the beach with children can be a stressful experience, particularly in the school holiday’s when it is packed. I have lived in Bournemouth for many years and am a big fan of the LV Kidzone scheme which runs through the school summer holidays was first launched back in 1996. The scheme works by giving children free colour-coded wristbands that match-up with clearly marked sections of the 7 mile long seafront. Families write their contact numbers on the wristbands and sit in the marked sections to allow beach staff to reunite them if they accidentally get separated throughout the day.… Continue Reading “Bournemouth Beach Safety with LV Kidzone”

We enjoy camping, although choose to go somewhere where they have some facilities to keep the kids entertained and us comfortable. Crealy Great Adventure Park & Resort, situated in the heart of the East Devon countryside is the perfect destination for the ultimate Devon family holiday full of excitement and adventure. They have a fantastic choice of accommodation to suit all budgets and camping tastes including 5 star lodges with hot tubs, luxury themed glamping tents and the very best in facilities for family camping and touring caravans. We were invited to stay at Crealy Meadows in a Medieval Glamping Tent, which is… Continue Reading “Glamping at Crealy Meadows”

This weekend we attended Larmer Tree Festival for the first time and had no idea what to expect. The festival is set in Larmer Tree Gardens in Cranborne Chase, Dorset which is s simply stunning location with gardens brimming with colour and roaming peacocks showcasing their feathers as they wander around the site. I was expecting heavy traffic around the site, but I was pleasantly surprised when we arrived with no traffic problems at all. It was a lovely, picturesque drive through rural Dorset about 45 minutes from home and I was impressed that the parking was free. We collected our… Continue Reading “Larmer Tree Festival”

Despite being almost 3 hours away from home, Drayton Manor is a place that all the family love to visit as it caters for all ages with Thomas Land for the little ones and adrenalin rides for the teens. Last weekend we were invited up to the park to try out their new VertiGO high ropes activity which you can read about by clicking the link. It is safe to say that Isaac adored the course, especially the ziplines which he did again and again, whilst Eliza and Sebastian practised their balance on the VertiGO Tots course. Once we had… Continue Reading “A Day Out at Drayton Manor”